Tow target construction



Sept. 24, 1957 E. FREY 2,807,287

'row TARGET consmunon Filed Dec. 23, 19 55 2 Sheets-Sheet l 'IWI IN w IN VEN TOR.

Edward Frey BY AT TORZVE YS p 1957 E. FREY ,807,287

TOW TARGET CONSTRUCTION Filed Dec. 23, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 JNVENTOR.

'Eziwwzd Frey Y %W &

ATTORNEYS 2,897,287 Patented Sept. 24, 1957 2,807,287 TOW TARGET coNsTRUcTIoN Edward Frey, Akron, Ohio, assignor to The Massillon- Cleveland-Akron Sign Company, Massiiion, Dhio, a corporation of Ohio Application December 23, 1955, Serial No. 554,977 4 Claims. (Cl. 139-419) The invention or discovery relates to tow target construction pursuit plane for convenience, but may actually be any type 'of fighting aircraft, from a low-powered, low-speed, training plane, to a high-powered, high-speed bomber, or a high-powered, high-speed fighter escort plane.

Even at relatively low altitudes and low-speeds of tow are otherwise satisfactor Tow targets used prior to the present invention have been made of various types of open mesh flexible fabric material, and may be upwards of nine (9) feet wide by forty-five (45) feet long. The forward end of the target may be termed the leading edge, and is connected by a hitch to the rear end of the tow line. The rear end of the tow target may be termed the trailing edge.

In use, the forward portion of a tow target assumes a more or less fiat horizontal position which extends to as much as one-third of the total length of the target. The middle portion of the target, which may extend another one-third /3) of the total length of the target,

peaks and valleys of direction of flight.

of the target, assumes a condition of whipping or flapping, which is very damaging to the material of the target in this whipping portion of the target.

The difficulties encountered in prior tow target constructions include the following:

First: For the purpose of minimizing the power required in the towing plane, it is desirable to minimize the total weight of the target. A target made of material having a weight per square yard suificient to reduce rippling and whipping to a satisfactory degree, has a total weight which is prohibitive.

Second: As the speed of the tow target is increased for use in training marksmen operating from the higher speed aircraft, the greater the increase in target speed, the greater is the undesirable rippling and whipping of the target.

Third: A high speed fighting plane is manually controlled until contact with the target is made, then a radar operated control system latches on the target, and operates the fighting plane, until the fighting plane has demolished the target, or vice versa, 01' the target eludes the fighting plane. trained in such operations. Tow targets of prior construction have frequently been made of nylon or similar material having no radar reflecting properties. To overcome this, radar reflecting corners have been attached to the Every airborne marksman must beof radar reflecting corners.

The objects of the clude the provision of a tow target construction, by the out exceeding desired weight A further object of the present invention or discovery is the provision of such a target which may be made of target which has the desired weight limitations.

The foregoing and tow target construction, parts, combinations, and subcombinations, which comprise the present invention or discovery, the nature of which is set forth in the following general statement, and preferred embodiments of which, use, are set forth by way of example in the following description, and which are particularly and distinctly pointed out and set forth in the appended claims forming part hereof.

The nature of the improvements of the present invention may be described in general terms as constituting strands of two different tion filling strand diameters being as great. as the minimum diameter and the other of the middle portion filling strand diameters being greater than the minimum diameter, and the filling strands in the other end portion of the panel, all have a diameter greater than the minimum diameter, whereby each panel constitutes a diflferential woven fabric panel including suceach having a woven fabric con struction different than the woven fabric construction of each of the other panel portions. Preferably the Warp strands are arranged in narrower side bands and a center band and wider .bands between each side hand and the center band, and the warp strands in the narrower bands including pairs adjacent each other and forming a smaller mesh weave than the weave of the wider bands.

one of the middle porcessive panel portions,

vention or discovery are illustrated in the accompanying drawings forming part hereof, in which Fig. 1 is a reduced plan view, diagrammatic in part, showing a tow target including end portions and an intermediate portion of the present invention or discovery.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view showing an are-a of a first leading portion of the improved tow tar get, the first target portion having a first woven fabric construction.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary plan View showing an area of a third trailing portion of the improved tow other objects are attained by the target, the third target portion having a third woven fabric construction.

' Fig. is a reduced fragmentary diagrammatic plan view of apa'nel length ofth improved fabric for-'theimproved towtarget showing the tran'sverse continuous junction be tween the" first and second target portions, and other details.

i Fig. 6'is a reduced fragmentary diagrammatic plan-view of a panel length of the'improved fabric for the improved tow target showing the transverse continuous junction between the second and third target portions, and other details. H

Similar. numerals refer to similar :parts throughout the severalviewsof the drawings. V i

The tow target shown .in Fig. .l is indicatedgenerally by 10, and constitutes a preferred embodiment of the present invention or discovery. r

The tow target 10'is made of a single ply of improved flexible open 'rnesh differential weave fabric hereinafter described'in detail, and is'an elongated rectangle of such fabric which may be nine. (9 feet wide and forty=five (1451) feet long, for example. I ,i "I

The elongated rectangular tow target lo includes azle ading edge 11, a trailing edge 12, and transversely. spaced side edges 13 and 14. A hitch 15 connects the leading edge 11 in a usual mannerwith the trailing end of .a'tow line, not shown, which extends for a mile, more-or less, from a usual towing aircraft, not shown. r

The tow target 10 is constituted, from the over-allstandpoint, by a first leading target portion 16 having atransverse junction indicated by the dot-dash line 17 with a second intermediate target portion 18, which in turn has a transverse junction indicated by the dot-dash line19 with athird trailing target portion 20. a

As shown, the tow target 10,;divided over-all into the first, second, and third portions 16, 18, and 20, is made .diameter greater than the strands 28 .and 29, and which Y may have the same diameter as, ora greater diameter than, the strand 30.

A fragment of one of the panels of the target 10, such 7 i is shown diagrammatically in Fig. 5, at between the first 18. In

as the panel 21, the transverse continuous junction 17 target portion 16 and the second target portion this diagrammatic view, where the 'fillingstra'nds 28, 29,

and .30, are shown, thewarp strands are removed, to more.

clearly illustrate the continuity 'of'the fillin strands.

At opposite ends of Fig. 5'; the filling strands :arel'removed, and each set ofwarp strands 27a and2'7b is indicated by a single line. Warp reinforcing is provided in side bands 32 and 33 and center .band 34, by providing pairs of sets of warp strands 27a and 27b at the side of v 7 each of the fabric openings, instead of single sets of warp strands in the wide band 35 betweenthe reinforced bands w 32 and 34, and in the wide band 36 betWeenltheJreinforced bands 34and 33.' r

In Fig. 6, there'is shown in a manner similar toFig. .5, V

the details of construction of thepanel 21at the'transverse continuous junction 19 between'the second target portion 18 and the third target portion 20.

an open mesh' woven yarn fabric of the marquisette type;

. The improved tow target 10 may befurthermore de. scribed as a banner style or type tow target. In general each of the target portions 16,18, and 20, may be termed Yarn may be furthermor'e defined as being either mono filament or multi-filament, multi-filament yarn being spun.

Any desired filaments or fibres orco'rnbination's of fibres may be used, preferably'the filaments or fibres are constituted by synthetic matenals such as nylon, Orlon, and

the like.

of three continuous longitudinally extending fabric panels I including a side'panel 21 having the outer side edge 13, and at its other edge an inside connecting seam 8-1 with one edge of a centerpanel 22. The other edge of the center panel 22 has an inside connecting seam 8-2 with a side panel 23, whichhas the outer side edge 14.

Firstly, each of the three panels 21 22, andiB, in the first leading target portion 16, is constituted throughout the major portion of its area, by a first woven fabric construction indicated generally by 24, and shown enlarged inFigQZ. l

Secondly, each of the three panels 21, 22, .and 23, in the second intermediate target portion 18 .is'const ituted throughout the major portion of its area, by a second woven fabric construction indicated generally by'2.' 5,.and shown enlarged in Fig. 3. a Thirdly, each of the three panels '21, '22, and '23, inthe third trailing target portion, is constituted throughout the stituted by common warp yarn strands 27a and 27b, and

by different filling yarns. V

The first woven fabric construction 24 in any panc'lsuch as 21,. includes a continuous filling yarn strand '28 having a diameter which-is the least diameter of any filling yar'n strand'in the entire panel.

The second woven fabric construction in the panel ZTincludes a continuous filling 'yarn st'r'and29 and a con:

7 tinuousfilling yarn strand 30. The diameter of 'the yar'n strand 2 9'.is less thanthe diameter of the yarn strand 30, and the diameter of the yarn strand 29 maybe the same as the diameter of the yarn strand :28, and the strand 29'. preferably is'continuous with the strand 28. I

1 a The third woven fabric construction 26 .in the panel 21 includes a continuous filling yarn strand 31 which has a The yarn forlthe, warp' strands of the improved con tinuouspanels, such as panel-21, may be nylon yarn, or may be Orlon yarn, or yarn combining different filaments or fibres such as Orlon andnylon. The yarn for the warp strands is required to withstand low temperatures, as 18 also the yarn for the filling strands. V

The yarn for the filling or woof strands may be nylon,- or a combined filament or fibre yarn adapted for providing the desired dimensional stability and flexing capacity in operation under temper-ature extremes of from 6 5 F.

The improved tow target 10 furthermore may have its second portion 18 and third portion 20'metallized to provide a radar reflecting trailing portion, and a non-radar reflecting leading portion,

reduces'the over-all weight of the target, and prevents Such improved construction damage of thetow hitch which may occur if the leading portion of a banner typet-ow target is provided with radar reflecting means. 7 I

, Whether the tow target 10 is partially metallized, or

not, it is desirable to'lubricatethe target. with a silicone preparation to provide maximum flexing and increasedrip and tear strength. 7

Prior tow target constructions In .order to show by comparison, the advantagesv of tow :targets including the improvements of the present invention or discovery, the nature and performance of prior tow target constructions .is indicated by the following:

I. An early form of banner type :tow target was made of cotton covered steel wire woven into a screen fabric similar to door and window screen.

. 11. Various tow target constructions made of plastic coated fabric material were similarly inadequate.

III. Tow targets madeof Leno Weave material woven from an extruded .monofilarnent ofpolye'thylene were similarly inadequate. r

'Such a target was satisfactory for speed and training-purposes on gunnery IV. Tow targets made of specially woven nylon marquisette gave fairly good results at 20,000 to 30,000 feet altitudes, and true ground speeds of over 300 miles per hour. In order to make it possible for such a nylon marquisette banner tow target to give such performance results, it was necessary to substantially reinforce the target. This was done by binding the edges of the target with nylon webbing, and by adding nylon webbing reinforcing -strips lengthwise on both sides of the banner target at intervals across the width of the target. This reinforcing increased the drag of the target to an undesirable degree.

Tests of present improved banner type tow targets A number of improved banner type tow targets of the present invention or discovery have been made and tested in the presence of the inventor at the 4750th Air Training Command of the United States Air Force, at Yuma, Arizona, with the following results.

A. Test flights including Dry Runs and Firing Missions were run during the week of November 15, 1954, with results which were considered to be very satisfactory.

B. Drag Tests were made during the week of December 6, 1954. In each test the improved target returned in excellent condition after having been flown at a true air speed of 385 miles per hour at altitudes as high as 30,000 feet. Drag measurements showed a decrease in drag of better than 40% from the drag of a comparable polyethylene target.

I claim:

1. Banner construction for a tow target and the like, including a plurality of longitudinally extending rectangular panels substantially longer than they are wide, each panel having longitudinally extending laterally spaced side edges with at least one side edge adjacent a side edge of an adjacent panel, each set of adjacent panel side edges having a longitudinally extending seam connection, each panel including end-to-end arranged end and intermediate rectangular panel portions, each panel constituting a single open weave fabric having laterally spaced warp strands extending continuously throughout the entire length of the panel and having longitudinally spaced filling strands extending the entire width of the panel, the filling strands in the rectangular panel portions at one end of the banner being of a minimum diameter, some of the filling strands in the intermediate panel portions having at least the diameter of the minimum diameter filling strands in said one end panel portions and the other filling strands in the intermediate portions having a larger diameter, the filling strands in the other end panel portions of the banner being of amaximum diameter at least as large the larger diameter filling stl'ands in said intermediate panel portions, and the continuous warp strands providing a seamless continuous connection between the filling strands in adjacent panel portions.

2. Banner construction for a tow target and the like including at least one longitudinally extending panel, each panel being substantially longer than it is Wide and including end-to-end arranged end and intermediate groups of at least two strands per group, the strands in one group having a diameter of at least the diameter of the strands in said one end portion and the strands in the other group having a larger diameter, the filling strands in the other end panel portion of the banner being of a maximum diameter as large as the larger diameter filling strands in said intermediate panel poradjacent panel portions.

3. Banner construction for a tow target and the like including at least one longitudinally extending panel,

each panel being substantially longer than it is wide and including end-to-end arranged end and intermediate panel group, all of the filling strands in the other end panel portion being of said maximum diameter, and the continuous warp strands providing a seamless continuous connection between the filling strands in adjacent panel portions.

4. The banner construction as set forth in claim 3 in which some of the filling strands include metallized strands in at least the said other end pontion.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

